3D visualization of the intratemporal course of the facial canal using computed micro-tomography.

The current study presents high resolution reconstructions showing the course of the facial canal within the temporal bone and visualizes the spatial orientation of the subsequent segments of the facial canal. 3D reconstructions of the facial canal were created from micro-CT data obtained from the right and left human temporal bones of an adult individual of the male sex. For this purpose, volume and surface rendering was applied. 3D models of the facial canal and adjacent osseous structures comprehensively revealed its intricate course and depicted the spatial orientation of its subsequent segments: labyrinthine, tympanic and mastoid. The labyrinthine segment of the facial canal was clearly displayed in the horizontal plane whereas the tympanic and mastoid segments were entirely visible in the sagittal plane, which lines up along the long axis of the petrous part of the temporal bone.